Volusia sheriff's captain investigated again after return from FBI academy

LYDA LONGASTAFF WRITER

Sunday

Nov 25, 2012 at 8:02 PM

Capt. Michelle Newman, the highest-ranking female deputy in the Volusia County Sheriff's Office, is under investigation for the second time this year after her return from attending the FBI National Academy, records show.

Capt. Michelle Newman, the highest-ranking female deputy in the Volusia County Sheriff's Office, is under investigation for the second time this year after her return from attending the FBI National Academy, records show. Newman, who was sent to the prestigious law enforcement training institute in mid-July for 10 weeks, was not among the 264 graduates of the National Academy's 250th session, information provided by the Sheriff's Office shows. It's not clear why Newman did not graduate in late September, but shortly after she returned from the facility in Quantico, Va., she became the focus of a second internal affairs investigation. The first query, initiated in August, was opened while Newman was still at the National Academy, records show. She was interviewed via telephone for that investigation because she was still in Quantico. The anonymous allegations lodged against Newman and a handful of her colleagues in that investigation focused on extra-marital affairs. The allegations were not of a criminal nature, but an ethical one, supposedly in violation of the county's policy concerning conduct that reflects unfavorably on Volusia County as an employer. The allegations in the first internal affairs investigation were not sustained, records show. But it wasn't long before the captain was placed under investigation again — this time in late September. While the details of why Newman is under investigation this time will not be revealed until the query is completed, the investigation again falls under possible violation of the same county policy as the first query. However, on Nov. 2, Chief Deputy Mike Coffin sent Newman a second notification of internal investigation with an amendment. Besides citing the first county policy concerning conduct that reflects unfavorably, Coffin included a second section of that policy that states "any other conduct or action of such seriousness that disciplinary action is considered warranted." Newman — a 14-year veteran of the Sheriff's Office who became a captain in 2011 — did not return an email message or a call left at her office at the Sheriff's Operations Center in Daytona Beach last week. Sheriff's spokesman Gary Davidson could not comment on the case because it's an active internal affairs investigation. In addition, Davidson could not comment on whether Newman graduated from the National Academy. However, he did say that the last officer from the Sheriff's Office to graduate from the National Academy was Capt. Eric Dietrich, who attended the academy in 2009 for its 237th session. Dietrich was a lieutenant when he went to the National Academy, Davidson said. Kurt Crawford, a spokesman for the National Academy, could not comment on Newman's time in the 250th session of the Academy, citing the sheriff's internal affairs investigation. He said law enforcement officers are normally nominated for the FBI National Academy by their agencies. The FBI then chooses who will attend the 10-week training course, Crawford said. The FBI pays for the officer's room and board and all materials needed while at the National Academy. The law enforcement agency that sends the candidate pays for that officer's salary while he or she is at the school.

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